


Royal Blood

by Titels



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU, Fantasy, M/M, Naive Harry Potter, One Shot, Possessive Behavior
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-16
Updated: 2017-07-16
Packaged: 2018-12-02 23:30:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11519790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Titels/pseuds/Titels
Summary: The kingdom of Gryffindor fell years ago, at the hands of lord Voldemort. The ruling family - the Potters - were all killed. But there are rumours that the son survived. Harry finds it hard to believe there is any truth to this.





	Royal Blood

**Author's Note:**

> I've always loved the short, creepy stories by amazing writers like The_Fictionist or You_Light_The_Sky, so this is my attempt at something with a similar feel. In the end I don't know how well I succeeded, but hopefully someone will enjoy it regardless :) 
> 
> (Also this isn't betaed, so feel free to let me know if there are some grammar issues)

The kingdom of Gryffindor had been in ruins for many years, inhabited only by scavengers and thieves. Thought many had tried to take over the land to expand their own kingdoms, no crops would grow and no cattle would live as long as the country was in the hands of anyone but one of the royal blood.  
But the royal family – the Potters – had all been destroyed over 20 years ago, as the dark wizard Voldemort invaded the country to punish them for standing against him. He decimated the castle and killed the Potters, only to vanish himself.  
Of course, after events like that there was always rumours, people saying that someone had survived. A witness swearing that they had seen a giant escaping with a small child in his arms. But those were only rumours, Harry knew that. So when he was approached by a strange man, thought tall and handsome, he was understandably sceptic to the idea of helping him find the missing Potter heir.  
But the job paid well, and Harry wasn’t exactly in a position to be picky. He was a bare month away from being kicked out of the orphanage he had grown up in and then he would be living on the streets. No one wanted to hire a nameless and untrained orphan. So he accepted, and the stranger – Tom Riddle – took him with him to the far corners of the world hunting for the missing heir.  
There was magic, Riddle assured him, that could find this boy. But the texts had been in the hands of Lord Voldemort, only to be lost with his demise. Riddle believed that one of his followers would have it and so they went from family to family only to come up with nothing.  
“What are you going to do, anyway, when you find this boy?” Harry had asked, even though he knew Riddle didn’t appreciate questions.  
Tom had given him a sideways glance and raised an eyebrow. “What do you think? I’m going to put him back on the throne, of course.”  
“Out of the kindness of your heart, I’m sure.”  
He smiled then and turned to face Harry properly. Leaning closer he lowered his voice. “Yes, out of the kindness of my heart.” The grin told Harry that it was anything but.  
That had been in the beginning of their journey. Harry had, at a later date, learnt much more. Things such as that Tom’s goal really was to rule the kingdom – not a real surprise there, he figured – and that Tom believed that the only way to do so would be by marrying the heir. Only then would Gryffindor be able to rise again and he could be rid of the poor sod who happened to be the survivor.  
“You see, Harry,” Tom had told him once when he was in a rare good mood, “the Potters made a deal with the gods. To forever have their country flourish under their reign. And this agreement would expand to include the ones who joined the family even without sharing the blood – such as a spouse. It’s a good rule, ensuring their continued success even if the original bloodline would be lost.”  
“But what about now?” Harry asked. “Why would they make such a deal, knowing that if they died no one would ever be able to inhabit the land again? That’s just selfish.”  
Tom smiled in a way that made Harry seethe. Tom always smiled like that when he believed Harry to be stupid. “Selfish or not, it’s a good strategy. No one would even consider trying to overthrow the only family who could possibly rule successfully. There would be no point in fearing their neighbours, no need to fear war.” He paused for a second. “Of course, that was their downfall. Without any armies they were weak and fell easily to Lord Voldemort’s power. Preparation is everything, Harry.”  
Over and over again, Tom’s way of talking would make it seem almost like he was enamoured with the dark wizard that had spread terror over the world years before Harry was born. “Clearly your mighty Voldemort didn’t prepare enough...” Harry muttered under his breath.  
Unfortunately, Tom heard him. His red eyes flashed with anger and froze Harry to the spot. Talking about Voldemort in anything but an admiring fashion was always a bad idea.  
“Have no fear, Harry, Voldemort will return. This is a man that has transcended mortality.”  
If it hadn’t been for the fact that Tom was too young, Harry would have been sure that he would have been his most avid follower. As it was, the brunette figured that he must have simply been the child of a death eater. He did have the madness of one.  
If there was anything Harry had noticed, it was that the death eaters they visited were perfectly crazy. The worst one was Bellatrix, the woman had practically been panting at the mere thought of her old lord. And she had thrown herself at Tom’s feet as he entered the house, as if believing he was her master. Ridiculous, unless the dark lord had been nothing but a toddler during the height of his regime.  
All in all, they were a crazy bunch. Harry did his best to ignore them as they searched mansions for the lost manuscript. But some things were just too weird. Like the way they would all startle upon seeing Tom, before bowing in reverence.  
When he brought it up with his travelling companion the man would just shrug. “They recognise power when they see it.”  
Tom, too, was an odd character. So full of himself (even thought Harry had to admit he had reasons to be) that his obsession with a lord just didn’t fit. How could a man who believed that everything he touched would turn into gold possibly be interested in following another? His ambition was too high to ever settle as a follower. 

The longer Harry was with Tom, the more a question was bugging him. Why had Tom chosen him, of all people, to come along? He had been nothing but a poor and uneducated kid. There should have been nothing about him to appeal to Tom. So eventually, he had blurted the question out. Tom had been quiet at first, the silence amplified by the gentle clacking from the hooves of their carriage horse. And then he had laughed.  
“You could say that I sensed something in you. And besides, I needed an apprentice who could come with me on my travels. You seemed like a good fit. Now,” he lifted his hand and a small fire bloomed in his palm, “did you want to learn magic or not?”  
Harry did, more than anything. It was the reason he hadn’t left after the time that Tom had almost thrown him out of a window in a fit of rage or after numerous death eaters had spat at him. He could endure it, so long as he got to learn.  
Magic was… it was amazing. When Harry had been a young boy, an old wizard had come to visit their orphanage. He came to bring those who had magical abilities with him to a place called Hogwarts – a school of magic. The wizard had laid his hand on the head of each of the children, and then he had brought two of them away with him. Except he never got to Harry, as Dudley and his gang had locked him up in a broom closet. When the kids that had been selected came back for their summer holidays they told the most amazing stories of a castle with moving staircases and ghosts and the great hall filled with food. For every year, Harry’s jealousy grew.  
A couple of years later, another wizard came back. Sleazy and with greasy hair, Harry didn’t like him. Still, he pleased with the man to test him. But no matter how much Harry begged, he wouldn’t check if Harry had magic. “You’re too old now,” he had sneered, “and we already examined the children your age. Get lost.”

During the first month with Tom, Harry didn’t have a lot of things to do. He rode with Tom in the carriage and he sometimes got to write down what the other dictated – of course, only after Tom had confirmed that he could write well enough – and he got to carry bags to whatever inn they stopped at. At one occasion they stopped at a weird looking cave and Tom grabbed Harry’s arm and the rest of the memory was a blurry mess.  
Harry awoke days later in a soft bed with the sun shining down at him. Tom was sitting at the desk writing and as Harry stirred he turned to look at him in contemplation.  
“Harry,” He eventually said, “How would you like to learn magic?”  
Things changed after that and Harry found his days occupied with studying. While he loathed the act, it turned out that Tom was a good teacher and they spent the long carriage rides practising what they could. Harry made good progress and this seemed to please Tom.  
Harry found himself relishing Tom’s praise.

By the time they came across Sirius Black, Harry had already been travelling with Tom for a year. Something had been different. Something that had been slowly growing and was only now revealing itself to Harry. Instead of sitting opposite, Tom would now sit next to Harry in the carriage. Closer too, sometimes even touching. There was no actual need for it as the carriage was large, but Harry found that he didn’t have any complains.  
And he would stare. More often then not Harry would turn to Tom only to find that the man was already watching him, red eyes gleaming. It made a shiver run up Harry’s spine.  
As they arrived at the Black Manor, Bellatrix attempted to give Harry a smack, a custom Harry had gotten used to. As he avoided it Tom was suddenly between them, his hand gripping Bellatrix’s slender throat. He hissed something in her ear and the woman went pale. As Tom let her go she fell to her knees, not moving as Tom stepped over to Harry and laying an arm over his shoulder to lead him inside. Harry didn’t think he would ever forget the look of pure hatred Bellatrix gave him, but it was erased the moment they got inside and a male voice choked out “James?!”.  
The man in front of him looked like death, pale and skeletal. Harry would have bet that if the man took his shirt of you could count every rib.  
“No...” The man moaned, taking a weak step towards them. “Not James… Harry..!”  
“Do I know you?”  
“Harry!” The man suddenly rushed up, only to be blocked by Tom’s taller build. His eyes flashed red.  
“What do you want, Black?”  
“Riddle… Why are you with Harry!? Get away!” He looked over Riddle’s shoulder at the black haired youth. “Oh, Harry! You’re alive! When the castle was attacked, I thought..!”  
“What?!” Tom roared, gripping Black’s throat much like he had done to Bellatrix. “What castle..?” The fury in his voice was barely contained.  
“Godric’s Hollow...” the man hissed, straining for air.  
Tom went very still. “Are you telling me that this boy is the Potter heir..?”  
Black’s breath came out in short gasps and his head bowed in a quick nod.  
“Hey!” Harry said, “Let go of him, he’s gonna choke!”  
With a sudden movement Tom flung Black against the wall, the thin man groaning and going still.  
“What the hell, Tom..!”  
The wizard turned on the spot, looming over Harry.  
"Well well, Harry, this changes everything..."  
Harry didn't like the look on Tom’s face. His eyes were lit up with an unnatural intensity. "Harry..." He said, crowding close, "remember what you promised. You'll help me, right?" A heavy hand landed on Harry's shoulder, moving up to grasp the back of his neck. "Right?"  
Harry swallowed. "I.. Uh, I don't think the agreement covers that."  
Tom smiled at him. "Doesn't it? Well, are you actually against it, though?" His face was very close now and Harry couldn't help the blush that was spreading. "Marrying me?"  
Harry's breath hitched, and a smug smirk spread across Tom's lips. The sight of it irked Harry. He pushed the other away.  
"As a matter of fact, I do mind that." He lowered his voice. "I have been hearing all about your plans for the wayward prince, remember?"  
"Oh but Harry, this changes everything, didn't I say?" He closed the distance again. "If it's you…” A hand gently grasped Harry’s chin, thumb stroking over his lips. His smile made Harry feel warm inside.  
“Ah… promise… promise you won’t kill me..?”  
The smile widened. “But of course. I could never kill you, Harry. You’re my precious apprentice.”  
Harry knew he shouldn’t trust that smile. He had seen how easily Tom lied to others, how he manipulated people for sport. But… Tom wouldn’t do that to him, would he?  
“Then, I guess… Okay.”  
The moment his lips were taken in a rough kiss, Harry couldn’t find it in him to regret anything.

It didn’t take long before Gryffindor flourished again. It had amazed Harry, how quickly the dead grass and trees suddenly seemed to bloom and how desert acres bloomed as lakes and rivers filled with water. That was some deal that had been made, that was for sure.  
It hadn’t surprised Harry how quickly Tom had taken control.  
Their wedding had been just after Harry reclaimed the throne, nothing more than a quick vow in front of the altar and the strange sensation of the goddess blessing as it fell upon them. Somehow it had felt reluctant. And then Tom had pulled him close and he had devoured Harry’s lips, his neck, his everything.  
The ferocity with which Tom ravished him had scared him almost as much as it had been arousing, and Tom’s growled possessive “mine” had come just as both of them were pushed over the edge.

It hadn’t taken longer than the next day for people to show up. Some of them were the death eaters Harry had become accustomed to by now – Harry no longer flinched at their rude comments, even if they did when Tom cursed them – but some were people who had been citizens of Gryffindor before. Tom welcomed them all with a wolfish grin. As the villagers settled in, they were reminded of one thing – obedience to the throne.  
Soon enough enough people had moved back that it was a country again, and the citizens of old journeyed all the way to the castle to greet their ruler. Harry enjoyed these meetings, for those who remembered would tell him stories of how the country used to be, and of his father and mother.  
Tom, of course, had no patience for these talks and would never stay long, if he even bothered to show up. Instead he sat in long meetings with the death eaters. Harry had long since stopped feeling insulted that Tom had brought the followers of Voldemort there – Tom followed his own rules.  
On one of the rare occasions that Tom joined him in the audience chamber an older man stepped forward to greet them, only to freeze in horror at the sight of Tom.  
“Devil!” He yelled, “Why are you here!?”  
Tom merely raised an eyebrow, looking almost amused. Harry hurried from his seat to set a calming hand on the man’s arm. “Sir, please take it easy. What’s the matter?”  
The wide eyes looked from Tom and locked onto Harry’s. “What have you done? How could you invite the devil to sit beside you!? The one who destroyed our land?! Please, get him out before it’s too late!”  
Harry’s eyes widened. “No, please you’re mistaken. That man is my husband, there’s no way he could be Voldemort.”  
“Your husband? Then all is lost...” The man slumped, all fight going out of him.  
“Hey...”  
“Guards, take that man to the cells.” Tom ordered coldly.  
“What! No! Tom you can’t imprison people for making a mistake!”  
Tom rose from his seat and walked down to where Harry stood. “My dear, we can’t let him go spreading such rumours… It will cause panic.” He pulled Harry into a hug. Behind him, Harry could see the death eaters smirking, laughing amongst themselves as if this was the best joke ever.  
In Tom’s arms, Harry froze.  
“Shh, Harry...” Tom whispered in his ear, and a hand patted his hair, stroking it. “Relax… Why don’t you forget about this..?”  
Harry relaxed in Tom’s arms, eyes going cloudy.  
“Yes, that’s it. You don’t need to worry about anything. Just stay here with me, my Harry...”


End file.
